Northwest Worker Sentenced for Incident - Spiked Toddler's Juice With Xanax

AP ^ | November 12, 2003 | AP

[Damocles]

	Posted on Wed, Nov. 12, 2003
	Northwest Worker Sentenced for Incident Associated Press DETROIT - A Northwest Airlines flight attendant who spiked a toddler's apple juice with an anti-anxiety drug to stop her crying was sentenced Wednesday to four months of home confinement. Daniel Cunningham, 39, of Ann Arbor, pleaded guilty in May to federal charges that included assault and distribution of a controlled substance on an aircraft. The incident was discovered by the 19-month-old girl's mother, who took the juice off the Amsterdam-to-Detroit flight last August after noticing that it was bitter and foamy and had blue and white specks floating in it. Turner had it analyzed by a laboratory, which confirmed the presence of Xanax, which is prescribed for panic attacks and anxiety, the FBI said. The drug can cause drowsiness and lightheadedness. The girl suffered no serious injury. Cunningham was fired by Northwest. Federal sentencing guidelines called for zero to four months' in prison.

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© 2003 AP Wire and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
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[wtc911]

Too many self-absorbed "grown-ups" having babies because it's next on the list of things "grown-ups" do (somewhere between BMW 5 series and third house in the Caribbean). We take our little guy into Central Park often and we're always amazed at the number of former DINK moms who parade their toddlers as if there were a visible price tag hanging from the collar. Add the forty something new dads without a clue and you get the best reason for not raising your kids in Manhattan, even if you have the $$$.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

I was on a flight recently from Atlanta to Memphis. Mercifully a short flight, because there was a two year old child that squealed at the top of her lungs as she played, just as if she was at home in the privacy of her own room.

The point is she wasn't at home, she was on a crowded flight with many tired travelers who simply wished that her mom and dad would have made an attempt, (they didn't) to keep her a little quieter.

If that is insensative and boorish, so be it.

[xsmommy]

i am always complimented on how well behaved my kids are, i believe in corporal punishment and mine would be the ones staring at the little monsters and saying to me "there's some chance you'd let US carry on like that..."(as they have said!) However, that being said, they would scream on an airplane on occasion. and people fly with kids, not necessarily on vacation, but maybe to visit a sick or dying relative who lives beyond driving distance etc. That to me is no more inconsiderate than the louts who feel that just because the seats CAN recline, that they need to do so, such that they are reclining right in my dang lap. Those are the times i wish i still had toddlers and could have them on my lap, kicking the seat in front of me....: )

[AxelPaulsenJr]

That to me is no more inconsiderate than the louts who feel that just because the seats CAN recline, that they need to do so, such that they are reclining right in my dang lap.

Wow, I hope I don't have to sit in front of you the next time I take the 12 hours flight from Chicago to Tel Aviv.

[xsmommy]

do you realize that the already tight quarters on airplanes are made even more cramped when you fully recline into the space of the person behind you? i try to be conscious of my personal space when i am in any confined area, i don't lean on their armrest, etc. But you have people who think their comfort is all that is important and everyone else be damned. and they are the FIRST ONES that would be bellyaching about some toddler disturbing their slumber! inconsiderate people SUCK, period. whether they are parents of screaming toddlers or just selfcentered slobs!

i have no idea if you are one of these people, so don't take it personally. i am just venting on what is my pet travel peeve.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Most airline seats recline only a few degrees, hardly enough to put someone in your lap.

[Conservababe]

I have three grandchildren under five years old, brothers and sister.

We are going to fly with them on vacation next summer. They are normal children who sometimes talk loudly, squirm and wriggle, cry or tussle with one another.

I surely hope we can get a seat next to you just to annoy the hell out of you.

LOL

[AxelPaulsenJr]

You also might try if possible flying Delta Airline's new 737-800. The seats are an extra couple inches apart. Nice airplane.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

You sound inconsiderate enough of others to do just that. LOL

[Conservababe]

Well, I am not going to duct tape them or sedate them just for you, dearie.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Nor I bet make any attempt to quiten them at all. Pookie

[Mr Crontab]

>I must ask why on earth do babies and infants need to fly in the first place?

Yeah, if my 85-year-old father-in-law wants to see his grandkids, he can just fly his sorry ass across country. Don't want to disturb anyone's eardrums after all!

[StolarStorm]

I'm not a big fan of seat recliners either (on short flights... on long flights everyone should recline). Regardless, almost all pet peeves can be mitigated by a few polite words such as "do you mind if I recline my seat as I weigh 400 pounds and need the room" or "I'm sorry that my kid just puked on you.". It's amazing how understanding and polite people will be when you ask them kindly for consideration and tolerence. Sadly, few actually every offer polite apologies anymore. It's just a symptom of the moral degradation affecting our society.

[xsmommy]

i am serious. i have had people virtually in my lap on airplanes, and again, all it takes is being considerate. : ) i will keep the delta flight in mind.

[bootless]

I must ask why on earth do babies and infants need to fly in the first place? What's a two-month old going to do at a funeral?

Two month old babies need to be with their mothers. They're not going to "do" anything at the funeral.

When my father died suddenly in 1993, my son was 1½. My then-husband was out of the country, and I'd be damned if I was going to park my son anywhere while I was across the country. There was no choice at all. FWIW, he was pretty well-behaved on both flights.

[Conservababe]

Three siblings...girl 5, boy 3, boy nineteen months.

Scenerio on a plane. Take out sippie cups, crayons and coloring books, stuffed toys etc.

All is quiet until the nineteen month old grabs a crayon from the three year old. The three year old squeals and grabs it back. Then the nineteen month old cries. So separate them and put the five year old between them. Then the three year old begins to lean against the five year old and she says to stop, loudly.

If you do not think this is normal behaviour for siblings of this age, then I have news for you.

And no, I am not driving with them overseas.

LOL

[bootless]

Before we get too far afield with the Mommy Wars, I'd like to take a moment to say that this nimrod irresponsibly dispensed a controlled substance with no medical training! The dosage of anything for a 19 month old child is so different from a full-grown adult - the chance of an overdose with something as common as Tylenol exists in those cases, much less a powerful mood-altering drug like Xanax.

So, how does the irritant of a toddler's behavior POSSIBLY justify the very real possibility of a drug overdose?

Good God.

[bootless]

Thanks for crystallizing what the important issue of this thread is! I replied to your #50 somewhat randomly, because I was at the bottom of the page. :-)

[Conservababe]

And yet this flight attendant only got a slap on the wrist from the judge for endangering a child's life.

However, if he had mistreated a poopsie whoopsie dog in the cargo hold of the plane, he would probably be in jail for years.

[bootless]

This F/A should be in jail for the amount of time that a drug dealer gets.

And yes, he should have been fired. He's got no business being anywhere near other people's food or drinks. I guess that leaves McDonald's out.